During the regular media briefing held by the UAE government in Abu Dhabi today, the Ministry of Education (MoE) announced that under the Cabinet's directives, it was decided that the distance learning system continue to be applied till the end of the current academic year 2019-2020 for all public and private schools and higher education institutions across the UAE.
Education in the UAE is a priority and receives the support and follow-up of the UAE leadership, which continuously tracks the progress of the educational process to safeguard the future of students, Dr. Amna Al Dahak, MoE spokesperson, said, adding that in order to ensure the continuity of education under these exceptional circumstances and at the same time maintain the safety and security of students and school community, it was decided that the distance learning system continue to be applied.
Stressing that distance learning proved to be an important and enriching experience over the past stage, Al Dahak valued the interaction of all the parties involved in the education system - including parents, teachers, students and mass media - with the MoE during the first and exceptional stage of the experience as embodied in the UAE students' bid to take part in and benefit from the experience and in the interaction and fruitful co-operation of all higher education institutions and teaching staff.
185,000 students and parents participate in evaluating and improving distance learning experience – Al Dahak indicated that during the past period, the MoE conducted an opinion poll with which more than 185,000 students and parents interacted with the aim of improving the distance learning experience. Based on the outputs of the poll, the ministry rescheduled the study plan to ensure sustainable teaching and learning, she said, adding that the plan would be activated from next Wednesday. The evaluation and examination mechanisms are currently being updated and developed for all UAE education systems, both general and higher education, for the current academic year, she said.
Using interactive platforms for public and private schools - The MoE is constantly improving this experience and will develop it in the next stage by adding smart solutions and interactive applications aimed at achieving the outputs of the educational process at all educational levels, Al Dahak said. To this effect, the MoE added smart applications and solutions to the education system, which would be used over the coming period including Alef platform, Alex platform specializing in mathematics for the upper levels, Matvak platform for early childhood stages and Nahla and Nahil platform specialized in raising Arabic reading skills, she added, noting that they would be available to all stages of study in government and private education system.
At the end of the briefing, Al Dahak urged parents to provide the appropriate educational environment for their children at home and encourage them to commit to and continue their distance learning, noting that the MoE regularly organizes counseling sessions for parents about the applications used in the distance learning system to enable them to support and track their children over the coming period.
02/04/2020
